The Legality of Unilateral Sanctions by The United States and European Union Countries Against Russia for Its Invasion to Ukraine in 2022

Abstract

The imposition of international sanctions is a method that is often used by countries in the world to resolve a dispute peacefully. The provision of international sanctions is called unilateral sanctions, where the implementation is carried out unilaterally by the sanctioning country. Likewise with the United States and the European Union which imposed unilateral sanctions on Russia. However, the question is whether unilateral sanctions are legal under international law and what can be done by the UN through the Security Council in response to this? Through research on the legality of unilateral sanctions, this legal research aims to identify the legality of unilateral sanctions in the eyes of international law and also to identify what actions the United Nations through its Security Council can take in this regard under current international law. This research is normative legal research using a statutory, comparative, and historical approach to answer the formulation of the problem. As a result, it was found that the unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union on Russia were legal and the United Nations through its Security Council could advise on the use of "smart sanctions". A further suggestion regarding this issue is that the United Nations can also make changes to the way the veto is used so that the dispute resolution process can run well.